From sign language to body language, individuals use a myriad of non-vocal methods to communicate with other individuals and with various electrical devices. It is believed by many anthropologists, that long before voice communication was developed, gestural communication, that is, communication using gestures made with the fingers and hands, was widely used between individuals.
Today, there are several known methods of gestural communication. One of the most common methods uses universally adapted gestures or hand signals to convey familiar expressions or ideas. Some well known examples include the clenched fist of anger, the "V" sign for victory or peace, and the "thumbs down" signed for disapproval, to name a few.
Other types of communication methods that use gestures include sign language and finger spelling. With sign language, an eloquent and living language developed by North American Indians, gestures are made with the hand and fingers to represent letters, sounds, words, or phrases. In finger spelling, each letter of the alphabet is represented by a specific position of the finger on one hand. Today, both sign language and finger spelling are used primarily by deaf people.
Some of the major drawbacks with the currently known methods of communication using gestures include the following: (1) many gestures are difficult to perform and require the sender to have great finger or hand dexterity; (2) many gestures are difficult to remember and to use at voice conversational speeds; (3) no currently known method of communication that uses gestures are adaptable for use in different languages, and; (4) no currently known method of communication that uses gestures is adaptable for both use between humans and, between human and electrical devices, such as computers.
A gesture and a method of communication using gestures which do not have the above mentioned drawbacks would be highly desirable.